Improvement in corn-harvesters



UNITED STATES l PATENT Ottica.

JOHN S. WILLIAMS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN CORN-HARVESTERS Specification forming part of LettersPatent No. 5B,50'5, dated December 12, 1865.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN S. WILLIAMS, of Chicago, in the county of Cookand State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improveruent inVCornstalk-Harvesters; and I do hereby declare that the followingis afull, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being hadtothe accompanying` drawings and letters and figures marked thereon,which form apart of this specification, and in which- Figure 1Vrepresents a top or plan view ofrny improved machine; Fig. 2, a sideelevation of the same.

The nature of my invention consists ina novel arrangement whereby thecornstalks, after being cut by the advancing machine vand retained in asuitable receptacle until enough have accumulated to form a shock, maybe readily and easily dropped from the machine upon the ground, and themachin-e be readj usted for another shock. p

To enable those skilled in the art to manufacture and use my invention,I will proceed to describe the same with particularity.

The same letters of reference refer to the corresponding parts in thedifferent gures.

A represents the large drive-wheel, and B a plate which constitutes theframe of the machine. On the outside of the wheelA there is a circularrack, and the shaft C is turned by means of the pinion D, which isgeared in said rack and is thrown in and out of gear by means of thelever E.

F is a cog-wheel rmly attached to the end of the shaft C, and drives theshaft I by means of H. To this shaft I there Aare two balance-` wheelsor cranks, J and K, rigidly attached, to which the pitman-rods L and Mare so connected that they drive their respective sicklebars'() and Nalways in opposite directionsthat is, when one bar is going one way theother bar is 'going the other way, and so on alternately.

P is the shaft of the drive-wheel A, and revolves with the wheel. Thereare two pulleys, Q Q,on said shaft, and bands runnin g on these pulleysdrive the reels R R, there being pulleys T on the shafts of the reels.These reelshafts have bearings on the frameU, and there are wheelsattached to the tops of them with. bent arms S, asplainly shown inFig. 1. The

bands'that drive the reels are so crossed as tol cause them to revolve,as indicated bythe arrows in Fig. l, andthe reel-shafts being placed atthe sides of the frame U, the arms S, as the reels revolve,bring thecornstalks towardthe center ofthe sicklcs and into the box U. The.

box or framcUis so constructed that when the cornstalks are thrown intoit bythe reels It R they rest principally on the hinged end frame X. Theframe vX is .so connected with a footboard, V, by means of the rod W,that when the operator, sitting on the ordinary seat at the front of themachine, sees that there are stalks enough cut for a shock deposits themon-the with wrought-iron shafts. `This method of manufacture can beapplied vonly where the shaft does not extend through the wheel.

The-tongue t is bolted to -the plate B, and then it is regulated so asto give a center draft` by having different bolt-holes through saidplate and moving-the tongue sidewise thereon. The left side ofthemachine is supported on the wheel Z by means of the upright Y.

It will be observed that the main part of 1n y cornstalk-harvester*thatis, the drive-wheel and its gearing and the frame B-is constructed thesame as my reaper and mower, which have already patented;

Having thus fully described the construction and operation of mycornstalk-harvester, what I claim as my invention, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

Thecombination and arrangcmen t of the box U, the hinged tail-piece X,the arm W, and foot lever V, substantially as and for the purposesspecified and described.

JOHN S. WILLIAMS.

Witnesses L. L. GOBURN, W. E. Manns.

